


It All Starts From Home

by TheFunk



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Roommates/Housemates, Cute, Domestic Fluff, Doyoung and Jaemin are Siblings, Doyoung plays the flute in this, Established Relationship, Feelings, First Meetings, Fluff, Forehead Kisses, Getting Together, Getting to Know Each Other, Happy Ending, M/M, Musical Instruments, Pandemics, Pre-Relationship, Quarantine, Sweet, Warm and Fuzzy Feelings, mechanical engineering student Kim Jungwoo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-01
Updated: 2021-02-01
Packaged: 2021-03-12 09:14:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,879
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29133147
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheFunk/pseuds/TheFunk
Summary: Due to the pandemic, Doyoung is going to have to move out of his dorm. Hopefully, Johnny's friend Jungwoo can help him, and maybe they can help each other.
Relationships: Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Suh Youngho | Johnny, Kim Dongyoung | Doyoung/Kim Jungwoo
Comments: 14
Kudos: 47
Collections: doyochi fest round one





	It All Starts From Home

**Author's Note:**

> Title from From Home by NCT U
> 
> To the prompter: Some of this is a little different from the prompt but I do hope you enjoy it, I had a ton of fun writing it!

Doyoung should have known it was coming. When the virus was first discovered to have come to South Korea, it wasn’t scary yet, they really didn’t know what it was yet. But then it started spreading fast and people started to die. He really should have known that the government was going to start taking action. Naturally, that meant big groups of people were out. Moving all of his classes online made sense. What he hadn’t prepared for though, was that they were going to close the dorms.

Doyoung sat on his bed and stared at the e-mail he had just opened on his phone. He rested his head on his hand and rubbed the skin between his eyebrows. A headache was starting to form. They had to be out of the dorms by Friday. It was Tuesday.

“Yo hyung, did you get the e-mail they sent out? That’s crazy,” Doyoung’s roommate said.

Jaehyun walked into the room and collapsed onto his across from Doyoung’s. Doyoung rolled over to look at Jaehyun. The younger boy rolled onto his side and looked at Doyoung.

“What are you going to do?” Doyoung asked.

Jaehyun shrugged, “Probably gonna finally take Johnny’s offer up on moving in with him.”

Doyoung sighed. It made sense. Jaehyun’s boyfriend lived in an apartment off-campus, and had asked him to move in, but Jaehyun had been hesitant and didn’t want to change so much of his routine during the middle of the semester. But now it seemed that that wouldn’t be an issue anymore, and Jaehyun would finally be moving in with his boyfriend.

Doyoung, however, did not have a boyfriend with a nearby apartment and a desire to cohabitate. Doyoung had overbearing parents and an annoying little brother that lived on the other side of the country with a childhood bedroom awaiting him. It sounded like... agony. Especially if things got worse. If things got better, he wanted to be able to move back into the dorms and back to classes without dragging all of his things across the country.

“That’s nice,” Doyoung said, not wanting to get into... all of that.

“You going to stay with your family?” Jaehyun asked.

Doyoung rolled onto his stomach, “I’ll probably have to.”

Jaehyun laughed at him, “You don’t have to sound so depressed about it.”

“I know I know, it’s just... it’s so far and they can be a lot sometimes. If I could find and afford an apartment near here, that would be the dream,” Doyoung said.

“You could get a roommate, I’m sure someone needs one,” Jaehyun said.

“With three days of notice? I’m almost afraid of the type of person that would be so willing to get a roommate like this,” Doyoung rolled onto his side and looked at Jaehyun, “But that would be great.”

Jaehyun nodded at him, “I’ll ask Johnny if he knows anyone looking for a roommate.”

Doyoung murmured, “Thanks,” and Jaehyun turned away from him and started typing on his phone.

Doyoung sat up and grabbed his laptop from his backpack and opened it. As soon as it was booted up he started searching for apartments near his campus. Everything near him was... expensive. Campus towns were notoriously difficult to find housing in, especially during the semester. It’s why most of them were in the dorms in the first place. He switched over to the university’s website. Occasionally the site’s message boards would have people looking to buy and sell textbooks or hopefully, asking for a roommate. He scrolled for what felt like ages but the only person he found looking for a roommate was a guy that Doyoung recognized from one of his classes and had always given him the creeps. So, that was out. Doyoung groaned and shut his laptop, pushing it to the end of his bed.

“Nothing?” Jaehyun asked.

“Nothing.”

“I’m sure going home wouldn’t be that bad, would it?” Jaehyun asked.

Doyoung sighed and rolled over to look at Jaehyun, “Okay, so, you know how when in all those disaster disease movies, eventually people get put into quarantine? Yeah, I wouldn’t be able to handle that.”

“You’d rather spend a quarantine with a stranger than with your own family? That’s cold man,” Jaehyun said.

“No! I just know that my little brother will end up hosting all his friends at our house, he thrives off social interaction he would die being cooped up in our house with our parents. They would be there, and I can’t do that.”

“Jaemin’s friends aren’t that bad. You love Jeno! More than Jaemin sometimes. And the new one, what’s his name, Shotaro? He sounds sweet!” Jaehyun argued.

“Yes, I do love Jeno and Shotaro is an angel in human form. But with them comes Renjun, Yangang, and Donghyuck, and you know Renjun wouldn’t let Chenle be alone somewhere!”

Doyoung looked at Jaehyun with pleading eyes. Jaemin’s friends were great in small doses but together they were overwhelming and chaotic. He wouldn’t be able to do it.

“I’m gonna call Johnny instead, get answers quicker that way.”

Doyoung laughed and leapt off his bed, crossing the room and falling onto Jaehyun’s body, crushing him in a hug, “You’re a godsend.”

#

Jaehyun’s phone call with Johnny had been fruitless, but the older boy had promised to keep an eye out for Doyoung. Jaehyun had officially agreed to move in with Johnny, so the two of them had spent the rest of the day packing Jaehyun’s things. Folding clothes had gotten Doyoung’s mind off of his impending future for a while, at least until he got a phone call from Jaemin himself.

And he had been right. The combination of them having the biggest house, most of Jaemin’s friends being foreigners, and Jaemin’s Korean friends having parents in the healthcare field, all added up to Doyoung’s nightmares being realized. All of Jaemin’s friends would be staying with his family for the foreseeable future, and if Doyoung didn’t find a place to stay, so would he.

“If you find a place to stay, can some of us use your room to sleep?” Jaemin asked.

“Yes, but only Jeno or Shotaro. Maybe Renjun. You guys are all doing virtual classes now too, right? Okay then let Yangyang know he can borrow my extra music stand if he needs it for evaluations, and only if he promises to be careful with it! It’s in my closet. Yes, I’ll let you know what happens. Okay. Love you too, brat,” Doyoung cringed at the kissy noises his brother made at him and hung up the phone.

Doyoung shook his head as he slipped his phone into his pocket and began to fold again. Jaehyun pulled his suitcase from underneath his bed and Doyoung helped him place most of his clothes into the giant bag. They were lucky that their dorm was so small that they didn’t have that much stuff to pack, or at least, it had felt that way at first. By the time they had fully finished it was nearing midnight and Doyoung was exhausted. After his shower he collapsed onto his bed, sighing as he pulled the covers over him. Nearly twenty minutes later Jaehyun fell onto the bed next to him, not wanting to sleep in a bed without sheets, his hair still slightly damp from his shower. Doyoung would have complained about the possibility of wet pillows, but figured that he would be washing all of his things before he packed them up. He fell asleep with Jaehyun’s warmth and soft breaths sending him into sleep.

#

The best part about Johnny (aside from being a great guy), was that he had a car. Not a lot of college students had cars, there was no need for them, especially in Seoul. The public transport was good and there was never usually any need to go very far, so it was fine to be without. But Johnny was an American through and through, and with that, came a car.

The next day saw them filling Johnny’s trunk and backseat with all of Jaehyun’s things. Doyoung sat in the backseat as Johnny drove, one of his hands clasped in Jaehyun’s. Doyoung eyed them wistfully. What they had was sweet. Loyalty and devotion and understanding. Doyoung’s last relationship had ended with his boyfriend cheating on him and Doyoung crying into Jaehyun’s chest. It was something he probably should have noticed earlier, but he had been too blind to see it. Watching Jaehyun and Johnny together had helped to ease the pain. True love did exist, Doyoung just hadn’t found his yet. Everyone moved at a different pace. Doyoung smiled at them one last time and pulled his phone out, beginning the seemingly endless scroll that was his search for a roommate.

The car ride felt like it only took about ten minutes, but Doyoung knew it was longer. He locked his phone and shoved it in his back pocket. He slipped his mask on his face and got out of the car. He slung Jaehyun’s backpack onto his back and grabbed a box, following Johnny up the stairs to his apartment. The boxes were heavy and the walk back and forth was tiring, but they ended up finishing moving them all into the apartment just before lunch. Johnny ended up buying them all food, and Doyoung took that as his payment for helping.

Doyoung shoved a piece of pizza in his mouth and Johnny threw a napkin at him. Doyoung wiped the grease from his mouth and Johnny smiled at him.

“Have you found a roommate yet?” Johnny asked.

Doyoung shook his head, “Not yet. It doesn’t seem like anyone’s looking right now, especially with such short notice. Most people want to know who’s moving in with them.”

“Well, I’ve got someone who might need a roommate, but it all depends on what his current roommate does. I don’t want to get your hopes up too much, though,” Johnny said.

Doyoung grinned, “Jokes on you, my hopes are up!”

Jaehyun chuckled and Doyoung took another bite of his pizza. There was a possibility he could find a roommate. And if they were someone that Johnny knew, surely they would be a good person. Johnny wouldn’t make him live with someone who sucked. He didn’t know what decision this person’s roommate needed to make, but he hoped he made it fast. The sooner he knew, the sooner he could prepare himself either way.

“You’re going to help me move, right? Even if I have to move all the way back to my house?” Doyoung asked.

Jaehyun nodded, “Of course. We’re not gonna leave you out to dry, hyung. We’ll be in front of the dorms Friday morning, no matter where you end up going.”

Doyoung thanked them and finished his food. He only got a few minutes to sit and bask in his fullness when Jaehyun pulled him to his feet. It was time to unpack Jaehyun’s things from their boxes. Doyoung readied himself for another tiring afternoon. Unpacking was so much worse than packing. They had to move Johnny’s things around to fit Jaehyun’s things in the drawers and in the closet. They put his mugs in the cupboard and his snacks in the pantry. They worked through the afternoon and soon it looked as though Jaehyun had always lived there, like he was meant to exist in this space. Jaehyun was wrapped in Johnny’s arms once they finally finished. 

The two of them were looking at their apartment and Doyoung’s heart ached. Jaehyun came to hug him goodbye and Doyoung held onto him tight. No matter how much they bickered or pretended like it wasn’t true, Jaehyun was Doyoung’s best friend. They’d grown up together and always planned to be roommates until, well, something like this happened. Jaehyun had found his person and was starting a new life with him. It was sooner than they had planned but Doyoung was so proud of him. He gave Johnny a quick hug and left them to do whatever it is couples do when they move in together. He didn’t want to know. 

He took a taxi back to his dorm and fell straight onto his bed. He laid on his side and looked out over his room. It looked so empty with all of Jaehyun’s things gone and it made him feel weird. He pulled his laptop from under his bed and checked his assignment sheet. Luckily, it seemed that all of his professors were still trying to move all of their assignments online, so luckily he had no new assignments. He clicked back to the bulletin boards and searched for a roommate. Surely someone would be available.

#

The next day was filled with doing laundry and packing clothes. It was odd to see his room so empty when he was finished. The room looked bland and boring, the only personality coming from his comforter that he had decided he would pack in the morning. He didn’t bother to look for a roommate. No one was looking. The only one he had found had been a girl that only wanted to room with another girl. He hadn’t even bothered to be upset. It made sense. If he were a girl he wouldn’t want to move in with some guy so desperately looking for a place to stay with one days’ notice either.

By tomorrow he would be back at home with his parents, a bunch of college kids, and a little brother who complained that he always played the flute too loud. They would always be in his space, he would get no quiet, he wouldn’t be able to practice in peace, and he’d probably end up being in charge of the younger ones while his parents were at work, despite the fact they were all in college and should be able to take care of themselves. He ordered takeout and watched a drama on his laptop. As he shoveled rice into his mouth he looked out the window. Soon, he would be out of Seoul and back home to the countryside. 

He threw his trash away and got ready for bed. There was nothing he could do about anything now. He’d tried his best but it seemed his future was set in stone. He made a mental note to text his little brother in the morning, and drifted off to sleep.

#

Johnny and Jaehyun showed up at his dorm just before noon. They were meant to be there earlier but they had gotten caught up with something. Doyoung tried not to think about what that was supposed to imply. It was a long drive to his family’s house and if they didn’t leave soon they would get there late in the afternoon. That would make the drive back into Seoul a late one for Johnny and Jaehyun, and he didn’t want to do that to them.

“Are you ready to go?” Jaehyun asked. 

Doyoung pulled a bag onto his shoulder and scoffed, “I’ve been waiting on you!”

Johnny sent him a sheepish grin, “Sorry about that. Let’s get your stuff in the car.”

They went back and forth putting boxes and bags in Johnny’s car. He took one last look into the empty dorm room and then locked the door. He was getting situated in Johnny’s car when Johnny’s phone rang. Doyoung began to play on his phone until he caught a few choice words.

“And he plays the flute all the time, is that gonna bother you? He’s kinda loud. Okay, see you later,” Johnny hung up the phone with a grin on his face, “Guess who just got a roommate!”

Doyoung jumped out of the car and ran to Johnny’s side, “Is it me? Do I have a roommate?”

“Yep! His name’s Jungwoo, he’s in my chemistry class and his roommate decided to move in with his little sister. He lives about ten minutes from here,” Johnny said.

Doyoung sat back in the backseat, “Well hurry up! I don’t have all day.”

Johnny laughed and got in the driver’s seat while Jaehyun leaned back to grab onto Doyoung’s hand. Doyoung placed a wet kiss on the back of it and Jaehyun pulled away yelling. Doyoung laughed. He didn’t care. He had a roommate! He had a place to live in Seoul! He held his flute case close to his chest and looked out the window. He had an apartment to move into.

Johnny was right when he said it should have only been about ten minutes away. Before Doyoung could really grasp what was happening, they were parked outside a tall apartment building. It looked nice enough on the outside, it wasn’t some high-end ritzy place, but it also didn’t look as if it were falling apart. It was perfect.

They began to pull boxes out of the car and made their way to the building. A woman at the door smiled at them as they came to the door and she held it open for them. Doyoung thanked her with a grin, not caring if he came off looking foolish. The ride up the elevator simultaneously felt as if it took both hours and seconds. He shook his leg in anticipation. Finally they were there. Room 418. Johnny took a look at his phone and then typed a number into the door lock. It opened with a click.

The apartment they walked into wasn’t pristine, but it was nice and tidy. There was a large blanket draped across the couch and it looked soft and comfortable. There were a few dishes in the drying rack and an apron hanging on a kitchen chair. There was a small potted plant on a window sill. It was nice.

Just past the living room was a hallway with two bedrooms. One of the doors had a sign on it that read: Zeus’s Room, with small lightning bolts drawn all over it. The other had a sign, though it was blank. Doyoung assumed this would be his room.

“Where is he?” Doyoung asked.

Johnny set a box on the floor, “He’s at work right now, he said to make yourself at home. He’ll be home in a few hours, we should be done and gone by then.”

Jaehyun smiled at him, “Isn’t this so exciting hyung?”

Doyoung nodded at him, “Really exciting.”

He sat his bag down on the floor and followed Johnny and Jaehyun back to the elevator. They went back and forth until eventually all of his stuff was in the apartment. He opened the door to the second bedroom. It was a decent-sized room with a bed in the corner and a desk against the wall. There was a closet and a dresser for his things. He could already tell that he was going to put his music stand next to the window. 

He opened one of the boxes and pulled some of his clothes out. He began to put them in his dresser and in the closet. Jaehyun began to put his notebooks and other school supplies in his desk. Johnny made the bed, using his comforter and finishing it by adding the stuffed bunny that his little brother had given him. They worked comfortably together, Jaehyun and Doyoung knowing each other well enough to know where Doyoung’s things should go. Johnny followed their lead well and before they knew it, they had everything moved into his room. They moved to the kitchen and Doyoung put his mugs in the cupboards. The little amount of food that he had kept stashed in his dorm room went into the pantry and then he was done.

He looked out over the apartment and put his hands on his hips. He had an apartment. He was moved in and he had an apartment. Johnny gave him the password to the door and then Jaehyun hugged him goodbye. They left him with well wishes and soon he was alone. He sat down on the couch and pulled his phone from his pocket. He dialed his brother’s phone number and waited. When his brother finally answered, he grinned into the receiver.

“I got a roommate!” he said.

“Woah, really hyung? So we can use your room?” Jaemin asked.

Doyoung chuckled, “Yes, you can use my room. Just don’t mess it up, okay?”

He could practically hear his brother’s grin, “We’ll do our best.”

“Brat.”

Jaemin chuckled, “Good luck with the roommate, hyung.”

“Thanks kid. Love you,” Doyoung said.

“Love you too.”

He hung up the phone and let his head rest on the back of the couch. He stood up and made his way to his bedroom (his bedroom!) and shut the door behind him. He adjusted some of the things on his desk and took a seat in his chair. 

He figured while his roommate was gone he would work on some of his assignments. None of them were due too soon, but Doyoung always liked to be prepared. The sooner he could finish his written assignments, the longer he would have to work on his composition piece. Music theory could be agony but at least it was straightforward.

He worked for about two hours when he heard the electric lock beep. He stood from his head and poked his head out his bedroom door. The boy that walked in was tall and had light blonde hair. Doyoung couldn't see his face yet, but he looked handsome. His arms were laden with grocery bags and he had a backpack hanging off his shoulder.

Doyoung left his room and the boy turned around and Doyoung finally saw his face. He had wide, round eyes and a soft nose. Despite his height and strong build, he looked delicate. Jungwoo stood still, eyeing Doyoung up and down, as Doyoung reached out to take some of the bags from Jungwoo's arms.

"Hi, I'm Do-"

"Dongyoung hyung?" Jungwoo asked.

"Doyoung, please. Only my mom calls me Dongyoung," Doyoung said, placing some of the bags on the kitchen counter, “Thank you for letting me move in with you on such short notice, I really appreciate it.”

Jungwoo scratched at the back of his neck, “It’s no problem. I wouldn’t have been able to afford the rent on my own with Taeil hyung moving out. And Johnny hyung said you were nice and would be a good roommate.”

Doyoung chuckled, “I’m glad to hear Johnny hyung thinks of me so highly. But I really appreciate it, Jungwoo.”

Jungwoo shook his thanks off with a shy smile and they began to put the groceries away. Doyoung made a mental note of where everything belonged and the kinds of food Jungwoo seemed to enjoy. Surely one of these days it would be his turn to buy groceries and Doyoung wanted to get him things he would like. 

“Is it true that you play the flute?” Jungwoo asked.

“Yeah, I’m a music performance major. Is the noise going to bother you?” Doyoung asked.

“No, no, my last roommate was a trumpet player.”

Doyoung laughed, he knew how loud trumpets could be, “Good.”

They finished putting the groceries away and Jungwoo scuffed his shoe against the tile floor. Doyoung found it oddly charming. He looked shy, but he also didn’t look as if he wanted to leave.

“Did you get moved in alright?” Jungwoo asked.

“Yeah, Johnny and Jaehyun helped me with everything. Johnny said you’re in his chemistry class?”

“I’m a mechanical engineering student,” Jungwoo said, a smile growing on his face.

Doyoung blanched, “That sounds hard.”

“It’s a lot of work, but it makes sense to me. Every problem can be solved, you just have to figure out how,” Jungwoo said.

“Huh,” Doyoung said, “It doesn’t sound so bad when you put it that way.”

Jungwoo giggled and the sound was sweet in Doyoung’s ears, “Thanks. Anyway, um, I have an assignment due tonight. And uh, I’d love to stay and talk more, but I need to do a lot of work on it still.”

“Of course, of course, don't let me hold you up!” Doyoung exclaimed.

“Goodnight Doyoung hyung.”

“Goodnight Jungwoo.”

Jungwoo smiled at Doyoung again, and then walked down the hallway and disappeared into his bedroom. At the click of the closed door, Doyoung made his way to his own room and prepared to go to bed. He could work on everything else tomorrow.

#

Living with Jungwoo was better than Doyoung could have hoped for. Jungwoo was sweet with his words, and attentive to Doyoung’s needs. Whenever he would go off to work, he would always make sure to say goodbye, and ask if there was anything Doyoung needed from outside. Doyoung tried to return the favor by having food made for when Jungwoo got home from work. No matter when he got home, Jungwoo always seemed to be starving. Even the simplest of meals would have Jungwoo staring up at him with amazed eyes with every bit he took.

While Jungwoo was at work, Doyoung would work on his assignments, or clean the apartment. He would do their laundry, leaving Jungwoo’s clothes in a little stack outside his bedroom door. Sometimes he would move his music stand into the living room to play because for some reason, the acoustics were just so much better in there. He would practice his pieces until it was time to make lunch or dinner, whichever corresponded to whichever shift Jungwoo had taken that day.

Doyoung’s professors had finally figured out what they wanted them to do. Luckily for him, they only had about four more weeks of the semester left. He only had a couple of papers, a flute evaluation, and a couple of other small assignments. The best part of being a musical performance major was that they didn’t really have any actual exams. There was no multiple choice for ‘can you play Flute Sonata No. 2 in D Major?’. Which he could, by the way. The only difficult thing he had coming up for the end of the semester was composing an original piece. 

Jungwoo on the other hand had what seemed like endless exams coming up. Doyoung had seen the work he was doing. There were formulas and conversions to know and remember, tips and tricks to figure things out, and logic that Doyoung didn’t understand that could make or break an answer. And so Jungwoo studied and memorized and worked out problems late in the night. It looked exhausting. The dark bags that were beginning to form under Jungwoo’s eyes were starting to make Doyoung wince whenever he saw them.

And then, three weeks into their living together, the country went into quarantine. Everyone was to stay home at all times, only allowed to leave for essentials, like groceries. Nothing would change for Doyoung, but suddenly Jungwoo couldn’t go to work anymore. Doyoung was secretly pleased. Without having to go to work, hopefully, Jungwoo would be able to get some well-needed rest. With extra rest, Jungwoo would be less stressed and would probably do better on his exams than he would have.

They took to working on their work in the living room, next to each other on the couch, laptops heating up their laps. They had holed themselves away in their rooms at first, but being alone like that had started to take its toll, at least on Doyoung. He was used to his little brother running around and bothering him, or lately Jaehyun on his bed on the other side of the room as him. Sometimes he needed just a little bit of white noise to focus properly.

#

There were only two weeks until the semester ended and Doyoung only had two assignments left, his evaluation, and his original composition. He had practiced until his fingers and his lungs began to ache, and his evaluation would be happening at noon. He paced around the living room, Jungwoo eyeing him from his place on the couch.

“Are you okay, hyung? Is something wrong?” Jungwoo asked, his voice as soft and sweet as it always was.

“Nothing’s wrong, really. I’m just nervous. I’m always like this before performing,” Doyoung smiled, trying to reassure him.

Jungwoo gave him a thumbs up, “You’re gonna do great hyung!”

“And you’re sure it’s okay that I do this in the living room?” he asked.

Doyoung had set his music stand and his laptop up in the living room to take advantage of the room’s acoustics. Jungwoo had said that it was fine and that it wouldn’t bother him, but Doyoung wasn’t so sure. 

“It’ll be nice to hear you play, without the sound being muffled through the walls. And besides, if I can’t focus I can just go to my room,” Jungwoo said, smile on his face.

“Right, okay,” Doyoung checked his watch, “crap, okay, it starts in like, five minutes.”

He pulled his flute out and made sure that it looked okay. He ran through his scales and then rolled his shoulders. He could do this.

The waiting room his video call was in opened and he was greeted by the stern face of his professor. She nodded at him and checked which piece he was going to play. Without much other fanfare, she gave him the go-ahead. With a cursory glance at his sheet music and a relaxing breath, he brought his flute to his lips and began to play.

With the first note, it was as if everything else fell away. He wasn’t being evaluated by the woman who once scolded him because his hair was a little messy one day. He hadn’t been kicked from his dorms by his college with almost no warning. Jungwoo wasn’t watching him silently from the couch. They weren’t in a global health crisis.

It was just him, his flute, and the music.

When he finally finished he opened his eyes to see that his professor had a slight smile on her face, “Thank you Mr. Kim, that will be all.”

He thanked her and ended the video call. He let out a deep breath. And then he heard clapping. From the couch, Jungwoo was looking up at him with wide-eyed amazement, clapping for him.

“That was really pretty, hyung, you’re really good!”

Doyoung smiled and looked down, scratching the back of his neck with his free hand, “Thanks Jungwoo. It didn’t bother you at all?”

Jungwoo blushed, “I didn’t really do any studying, I was watching you play instead. I don’t regret it though. It was amazing watching you play. Did you know you had your eyes closed the whole time? It was like you didn’t even need the sheet music, like you were the music. It was magical, hyung.”

And this time Doyoung felt himself begin to blush. No one else had ever watched him with such rapt attention. His family and his professors had said he was good, but no one had ever said he was magical before.

“Thank you Jungwoo, that means a lot.”

“You don’t have to thank me, it’s true,” Jungwoo said, picking a loose thread from the couch cushion.

Doyoung placed his flute back in its case and sat on the couch, he laid back and rested his head on Jungwoo’s thigh, “Do you need me to quiz you?”

“Yes please, hyung.”

Doyoung took the set of flashcards from Jungwoo and began to quiz him, Jungwoo’s fingers carding gently through his hair as they went.

#

Sometimes Doyoung lost all of his creativity. He had gotten three measures into his original composition and had hit a roadblock. The melody was soft and lilting but he didn’t know where he wanted it to go. The best compositions had a purpose, a reason for being, they drew emotion from the listener. He didn’t want to write a piece that just sounded nice for a grade. He wanted his piece to mean something (and get him a good grade, he wasn’t insane). But now he only had three days left, it was eleven at night, and he only had three measures of a required twenty-four.

He played the first three measures and added a couple of notes that grated on his ears. He played the first three measures again, trailing off into uncertainty. He played them again and again, but he couldn’t think of anything to put after them. He knew that he should probably start over from the beginning but he didn’t want to. He loved the opening, and why should he have to kill his darlings when his darling was so sweet?

He sighed and began to play the measures again, but was cut off by a knock on his bedroom door. He opened it with a sheepish grin. Jungwoo looked at him with tired eyes, his bags out in full force. He wobbled where he stood and he leaned against the doorway for support.

“Were you playing the flute just now?” Jungwoo asked.

Jungwoo had an exam late tomorrow morning that he would need to be well-rested for. And here Doyoung was playing music late into the night just across the hallway.

“Yes, I’m so sorry, was I keeping you up?” Doyoung asked.

“No, I couldn’t sleep even before you started. But it sounded nice so I thought I might as well come in and listen to you play,” Jungwoo said.

“Oh well, come in then. You can sit on my bed. I can’t promise this’ll be any fun, I’ve been stuck on the same three measures this whole time,” Doyoung said, guiding Jungwoo to his bed.

Jungwoo sat on the bed and made himself comfortable, clutching Doyoung’s stuffed bunny to his chest. His eyes were already beginning to droop as Doyoung began to play. He looked so tired and Doyoung wanted him to sleep. He played the first three measures again but this time slower. He dragged the notes out and made the sound lower and deeper. He swayed with the melody, watching as a serene smile grew on Jungwoo’s face. By the time Doyoung had finished his twenty-four measures, Jungwoo had fallen asleep, body slumping down onto himself.

Doyoung put his flute away and made his way to his bed. He picked Jungwoo up, Jungwoo’s head lolling against his shoulder. He didn’t have the heart to take the bunny away, not when it was clutched so tightly in Jungwoo’s hand, so he let him keep hold of it. He made his way to Jungwoo’s room and placed him gently on his bed, careful not to wake him up. Doyoung covered him with his blankets and made to leave the room.

“Hyungie, stay please,” Jungwoo murmured.

And what was Doyoung supposed to do when Jungwoo was looking up at him with hooded eyes, hand clutched to Doyoung’s pant leg. His pretty face was sleep warm when Doyoung ran his thumb against his cheekbone.

“You want me to sleep here with you?” Doyoung asked.

Jungwoo nodded and pouted up at him, “Please.”

“Let me turn the light off, okay honey?”

Doyoung turned the light off and slipped under the covers beside Jungwoo. The younger boy cuddled up to him, sighing as Doyoung wrapped him in his arms. Doyoung pressed a kiss to the top of Jungwoo’s head. 

He could get used to this.

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it! Let me know how you felt by leaving me a kudos and/or comment! 
> 
> I know that commenting can be stressful or difficult, so if you want you can leave one of these copy-and-paste comments, I'll love any encouragement you want to give me!
> 
> 1) "Just read this for a second time!”  
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